The Bitten
by SapphireClaw
Summary: Edward Elric hates it when he needs help, especially when his only source of help is Roy. But even he has to admit he's in over his head this time. After all, who's ever heard of a living breathing vampire? Much less know how to cure one? Roy sure as hell doesn't know how, but he's willing to try! But he's gotta get Ed to swallow his pride and let him. Parental!RoyEd Vampire!Ed
1. Chapter 1: The Failure

Chapter one: The Failure

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><p>Roy Mustang knew it was going to be a horrible day from the moment he woke up.<p>

His morning started with the wonderful wake-up call of his neighbor's obnoxious dog barking at gate-knows-what at four AM. Next came a burnt breakfast and an accidental coffee spill all over his uniform as he was just about to walk out the door, which resulted in wasted time changing into a spare uniform and ultimately caused him to arrive late at the office.

Which Riza decided to point out rather obviously with a monotone, "sir, you're late"

Roy just growled a meaningless apology and trudged into his office. He was immediately greeted by unusually large piles of paperwork in need of his signature. The sight made him want to just curl up in a dark hole and never come out. But, due to Hawkeye's oh so persuasive arsenal of guns, he found himself signing away at a snail's pace with the beginnings of a migraine.

After about three hours of ceaseless signatures, Riza came in with another stack of documents and dumped them on Mustang's desk. The man took one look at the two foot-tall pile of papers and dropped his head against the desk with an exasperated groan, which probably didn't help his headache.

"You're gonna end up working me to death, Lieutenant." Roy grumbled, lifting his head back up to give the new stack of paper a scorching glare as if he expected them to burst into flame.

Riza sighed and turned to leave the office. "But you haven't dropped dead yet." She said. "So suck it up, sir."

Roy growled something unintelligible as she left the room and begrudgingly continued his work.

This cycled for hours on end until it was dark and time to leave, and by that time Roy was just about ready to claw his eyes out or bang his head against the wall.

Once the clock struck nine o'clock, the colonel leaped to his feet and rather childishly ran for the door. Only to be stopped by Riza Hawkeye.

"Sir." She called before Mustang could step outside the outer office. He froze and slowly turned to face her, knowing better than to ignore a scary lady with a gun. "You aren't finished yet. You still have those left." She pointed through the open door to the inner office at his desk where a small pile of papers still sat.

The colonel nearly collapsed then and there at the possibility of more work but held firm. Instead, he silently willed the innocent pile of documents to spontaneously combust. "But Lieutenant, I'm tired and I can do those tomorrow." He whined childishly.

Riza shook her head and fixed her superior with a glare. "You are going to do them now. Consider it your punishment for arriving late." She growled dangerously.

Mustang opened his mouth to argue, but the drawing of Riza's gun convinced him to obey. He slowly trudged back into the office and dropped heavily into his chair behind his desk and picked up his pen.

Riza turned toward the exit and waved to her superior. "I am going to go home while you stay here and work, sir. Don't even think of leaving before all of your paperwork is done." She added before walking out the door.

Roy gaped after her, anger rising within him. He growled and looked down at the document he was currently working on with such burning hatred that he was sure that it would start to smoke... Any minute now... Nope. The bane of his existence just continued to sit there in front of him mockingly.

Eventually Roy sighed loudly and started to sign away again. He could feel his anger boiling in his chest and it only seemed to grow hotter.

He finished signing one paper and slid another in front of him. skimming it over, he found the words 'Fullmetal' and 'property damage' repeated within the white document. Roy groaned and begrudgingly signed it.

"Damn that brat." He growled to himself as he absently signed the other papers. "Why does Fullmetal have to destroy everything he touches? Damn kid'll be the end of me. Maybe even literally." For some reason, Roy felt a twinge of guilt for thinking that. But he quickly shook it away. "It's probably true." He snorted. "Fullmetal is so reckless and stubborn, always getting in the way and ignoring every warning I've given him. I don't know why I even bother!" Roy slowly grew angrier even though he had no reason to, he had to find some kind of medium to vent his anger. "he's always so annoying, screaming at me all the time and purposely putting himself into dangerous situations. I don't know how he's managed to stay alive for a whole two years in the military. Maybe one of these days his recklessness really will catch up to him. It'd be a relief on my part!" Roy scoffed to himself. This time he felt no guilt, he believed every word no matter how horribly cruel they were. "It would be better for everyone if Edward just disappeared."

Suddenly Roy heard the outer office door slam open and an uneven set of heavy, stumbling footsteps approach the inner office door.

Mustang tensed and quickly pulled open a desk drawer. he grabbed a pair of ignition gloves and pulled them on his hands. He stood from his desk and silently walked over to the door and stood in the shadows to wait for whatever was outside of his office.

The sound of heavy breathing could be heard now as the unknown assailant reached the door. Roy tensed and lifted his hand in preparation to snap and reduce the intruder to a pile of ashes.

There was a dull thump as if whoever was out there was leaning heavily against the door. Mustang quickly took the opportunity to surprise his enemy; He grabbed the doorknob, swung open the door, and took a step back as a body fell to the ground at his feet. He lifted his hand and aimed it at the intruder.

But he felt his heart stop in his chest and his stomach fill with icy horror as he saw a pair of pained and terrified golden eyes staring back at him through the dim light.

It was Edward.

Mustang just continued to stare at his subordinate, frozen in shock. The boy was breathing raggedly and his eyes were full of agony and terror. yet they seemed dull somehow, like...like they were... Fading.

"C-Colo...nel..." Edward rasped in a weak, pained voice.

"Fullmetal!" Roy gasped as he snapped out of his initial shock. He fell to his knees beside the young alchemist and gently rolled him onto his back.

As Mustang looked him over, he suddenly realized that most of Ed's red coat was glistening in the dim light and was stained several shades darker. Roy's heart skipped a beat. Ed was bleeding. Heavily.

"Fullmetal! Wh...What happened?!" He gasped as he frantically searched for the source of the blood.

Edward didn't answer. Instead he gave a strangled cry as Roy's hands reached his neck. Mustang gasped and quickly pulled away. His eyes widened.

"No..." He croaked. Roy immediately took Edward's coat and wrenched it off of him, ignoring the alchemist's pained cries. Next, Roy grabbed onto Ed's black shirt and ripped the collar away.

Mustang's heart stopped. He tried his best to keep himself from being sick as he stared at his youngest subordinate's neck.

Everywhere from his chest to his chin was soaked with scarlet. It's source: two extremely deep, ragged cuts on Edward's neck just above his collarbone, directly over a main artery, looking as if someone had dragged two dull knives across his flesh. The wound continuously poured blood, creating miniature rivers that dripped down the side of his neck. The boy's face was pale and sweaty, severe blood loss already evident.

"No..." Roy whimpered. A wound like this would almost certainly kill an adult, let alone a small child, yet he still tried to slow the bleeding by pressing his hands over the wound, but he knew... there was no saving his subordinate at this point. He'd lost too much blood already...

Mustang reached down and softly brushed Edward's blonde hair from his face with his free hand. The boy stared up at his superior with dull eyes that held so much pain and misery that Roy had to look away. He didn't want to see the life drain from Edward's once bright, fiery gold eyes... And it was already fading fast.

"M..must...ang..?" Ed's quiet voice whispered.

Roy reluctantly looked back at his dying subordinate. He felt his stomach turn when he saw grief and understanding in the faded golden depths of the boy's eyes. 'He knows what's going to happen to him...' Roy had to fight the tears away before they could spill down his cheeks.

"Y-yeah, Ed?" He choked.

Edward managed a weak and fragile smile. "I...I'm s-so... sorry..." He rasped.

Roy's heart constricted. "Sorry? For what?" He asked softly.

Ed looked up at his commanding officer with grief and sorrow in his eyes. "F-for eve...rything..."

Roy's dark eyes widened, the tears that were gathering there threatening to fall. "Wha-what are you... What do you mean, Ed?" He choked.

Ed gave a sad, heart-wrenching smile. "I've n-never told you this b-before... But... I always l-listen-ned to everything y-you said to me... I know I've been such a b-b-bastard to you..." Ed struggled to take another breath. "A-And I'm sorry I c-can n-never... make it up t-to you... b-before I... d..die..." He paused to blink the tears from his hollow, grief-stricken eyes.

"But... A...At l-least... I..." Ed's quiet words trailed off as he took a nearly nonexistent, ragged breath before his eyelids slowly started to drift shut.

Roy panicked. Fullmetal can't die! Not now! He squeezed Ed's hand tighter and he leaned in close, not bothering to acknowledge that the tears he had tried so hard to hold back were now falling freely. "D-don't close your eyes! Please! What were you going to say?!" He pleaded.

He felt Edward's hand weakly squeeze his back. "A-At least... I don't have to d-die alone." Ed whispered before his last breath left his body and his hand fell from Mustang's grasp.

Roy just stared at the dead child lying before him, tears still streaming down his cheeks. The silence that filled the room was deafening.

Then came the pain. The horrible, crushing agony and grief that constricted his chest to the point of suffocation. Mustang choked on a painful sob and pulled Edward's body against his chest and held him close. He could already feel the boy's comforting warmth fading.

The colonel's quiet sobs seemed loud even to himself in the unbearably empty office. He was alone. There was no one to offer comfort, no one to share his grief, no one but him and the silent body in his arms...

He had made a promise to protect his subordinates. They weren't supposed to die before him, especially Edward... The kid had so much to do, so much to accomplish, only to have his life ripped away all too soon just because Roy was useless to prevent it? How could he let this happen? How could he fail to protect another friend? First Hughes is murdered and now Edward dies right in front of him and he didn't do a damn _thing_ to prevent it. He broke his promise...

He failed...


	2. Chapter 2: The Monster

Chapter 2: The Monster

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><p>Eventually Roy's tears stopped and he just sat there on his office floor, cradling his fallen subordinate in his arms and feeling numb to the world. He knew that he should call someone, tell them what happened so they could come get the body and prepare it for a funeral, but the thought of burying his subordinate made something in Roy's chest clench painfully and his arms tighten around Edward's body as if he was still unable to believe that the boy was really gone.<p>

He was gone and he was never coming back.

Roy would never see him again, never hear his voice, never see him smile. There would be no more arguing in the office, no more name-calling, no more jokes about his height, no more giving him leads on the philosopher's stone... No more Edward.

All because Roy failed to protect him...

"I'm sorry..." Mustang whispered, knowing that Edward would never hear his apology. It was too late to apologize for any of the wrongs he had done to his subordinate. He couldn't apologize for failing him and taking him away from his only family, nor could he apologize for always looking down on him and never treating him with the respect he deserved... It was all too late.

Roy looked down at Edward's pale face and felt another painful wave of grief envelop his heart. He lifted a shaky hand and gently brushed the boy's hair from his face and stroked his cheek. Roy's stomach turned at the feeling of his cold skin. Ed almost looked like he was just sleeping, but the tiny signs of life- the steady rise and fall of his chest as he breathed, the shifting of his eyes as he dreamed, -were absent. It made the colonel feel sick to look at him. So he looked away.

Mustang didn't want to be here anymore. He wanted to leave and forget that Edward ever existed, he wanted to escape this nightmare. But he knew he couldn't escape reality. His nightmare was real, and it was right in front of him. Roy clenched his teeth and shook his head furiously. He hated feeling so pathetic. He was the Flame Alchemist, he should be able to endure this grief and do what was necessary. But for that to happen, he had to leave Edward's body behind to contact the Fuhrer and report the death of the Fullmetal Alchemist. So Roy decided to do what was best. As much as it pained him, he had to leave, even if for a little while.

Determined, Roy looked down at Edward and moved to let go of the silent body in his arms, but froze in horror when his gaze landed on the boy's face.

Edward's eyes were open.

They were open and they were staring straight at Roy, clouded and glazed in a dead stare devoid of any light. But there was something else that made Mustang's heart pound and his body tremble: the fact that instead of dull gold staring back at him, Ed's eyes were a sickly shade of blood red.

Mustang stared down at his dead subordinate, confused and terrified. Why was Ed looking at him and why were his eyes red?! His thoughts ran in circles, trying desperately to explain how Edward's eyes could open by themselves and suddenly change color.

Then they blinked.

Letting out a gasp of horror, Roy released his subordinate's body and scrambled away, only stopping his retreat when his back hit a wall. Roy's breathing was fast and panicked as he stared at Edward's body with wide eyes. It was splayed on the wood floor facing away from Roy, as motionless as it was just a few moments ago.

"Maybe I'm just going insane..." Mustang whispered to himself. He closed his eyes and tried calming his breathing to regain some of his supposedly lost sanity.

"Ugh..."

Roy went rigid with fear and his eyes flew wide upon hearing the groan of pain. He reluctantly turned his head back to Edward's body, scared of what he might see.

It was breathing, Roy realized. He could clearly see the boy's chest rising and falling irregularly and hear short, pained gasps coming from him, sounds and movements that were previously absent. But when he let go of Ed's body just moments ago, it was still cold! There was no warmth at all, he was still dead! So why was the boy who had been dead for hours _breathing_?

Mustang was brought from his thoughts as Edward's fingers twitched. He watched, horrified, as Ed's shaky arms moved to push the rest of his body into a sitting position. Ed swayed as if he was dizzy and would fall over any second but managed to sit up.

"Urgh... m-my head." Edward groaned, lifting a shaky hand to rub his forehead in an attempt to soothe his headache.

Roy just stared at the apparently-not-dead alchemist with wide, horrified black eyes. He frantically searched his mind for an answer as to why his subordinate came back to life for no apparent reason, but couldn't find one.

"It isn't possible..." He whispered aloud.

Edward lifted his head at the sound of Roy's voice and dropped his hand back to the floor to steady himself as he turned to his commanding officer. Mustang paled and his already racing heart pounded painfully against his ribcage as Edward's disturbing red eyes met his, seeming to shine through the darkness and pierce his soul.

Edward's brow furrowed in confusion. "M-Mustang..?" He rasped. "Wh...what are you doing here?" He then shivered and wrapped his arms around himself. "A-And why is it so cold?" The boy looked down at his hands, having felt an uncomfortable dried substance on his shirt, and his eyes widened in horror at the sight of his blood-caked skin and clothes.

And like that, he suddenly remembered what happened. He remembered seeing Mustang's desperate, scared face before he succumbed to darkness. "Oh god... H-How... I was... I-I was dying!" He looked back up at Mustang, scared and confused. "Colonel, what's going on?!"

Roy stared at his subordinate, unable to look away from the boy's piercing red eyes. He didn't answer Ed's question and instead he pointed a trembling finger at the blond. "Y-You were dead! You weren't breathing! You didn't have a pulse!" He gasped.

Edward's eyes widened in horror. "But... H-How?!"

Roy closed his eyes tightly and shook his head as if to clear it. "No. it's not possible. You can't be here..." He rasped. Then he opened his eyes and grinned crazily. "I must be dreaming! Yeah! Th-That's it! I must have accidentally fallen asleep! You can't be real!" He declared.

Edward's eyes narrowed as he watched his commanding officer rant insanely to himself. This was getting him nowhere. Ed rose to his feet and shakily walked across the room to where the colonel sat, trembling. He reached down and grabbed hold of the man's shirt collar and yanked him up, forcing him to look Edward in the eyes. "Get a grip, you bastard! You're acting like an idiot! Now answer my question!" Ed shouted.

Roy just stared into Edward's horrible red eyes and shook his head. "No. This can't be real. You can't be real."

The sound of a loud 'smack' suddenly echoed around the empty office.

Mustang immediately raised a hand to his stinging cheek where a large red mark was starting to appear as a result of the firm slap of Edward's flesh hand.

"Real enough for you?" Ed growled.

Roy just sat there on the office floor and stared up at his subordinate in a daze. 'That actually hurt. I felt pain... I'm... I'm really not dreaming.' His eyes widened and his breath hitched at that thought. "I'm not dreaming..." He whispered aloud.

Edward rolled his eyes. "That's what I've been trying to tell y-"

Ed's words cut off with a gasp when Mustang suddenly stood and lunged forward. Roy wrapped his arms tightly around his subordinate, ignoring the feeling of the boy's stone-cold skin.

"Woah! C-Colonel?! What are you doing?!" Ed gasped, alarmed, but made no move to push the man away. He gradually became aware that he felt oddly comfortable in his commanding officer's arms. The man's warmth chased away the constant cold he felt. Those thoughts ceased when Roy began letting out quiet sobs and his shoulders started shaking. 'Mustang is... crying?' Ed thought in disbelief. 'That can't be right! He's a heartless jerk!'

Mustang buried his face in the boy's soft gold hair. "F-Fullmetal... It's really you. You're really here. You're alive... I-I thought this was just a dream... I th-thought that you were r-really dead." He gripped Edward tighter. "I thought you were gone..."

Edward squirmed uncomfortably in Mustang's grip, blushing slightly in embarrassment. "Uh... I-It's okay colonel... I'm alright..." he mumbled awkwardly.

Roy shook his head and tightened his hold. "But you weren't alright! I had to watch you die! Y-You weren't breathing, you had no pulse... You were dead for hours, Fullmetal." The man choked out.

Edward stilled and just stared blankly ahead, trying to process what the colonel had just told him. Finally he spoke, "I...had no pulse? B-But how is that possible? How am I alive right now?"

Ed suddenly gasped as something occurred to him and he aggressively pushed Mustang away, horrified. "Did you perform human transmutation on me?!" He snarled, red eyes burning with anger and fear.

Mustang's eyes widened and he quickly shook his head. "No! I didn't do anything!" He gasped.

Edward threw his arms up and glared scathingly at his superior. "Don't lie! How else could this be happening?! Why the hell would you risk something like this? I don't understand why you would sacrifice so much just to bring _me_ back!" Ed stomped closer to Roy and gestured angrily at his confused commander. "What did it take? Your organs? Time off your life? Well? What did it take?!" He snarled.

Mustang's expression changed from shocked and confused to angry. He stepped toward Edward, looming over his subordinate. "Would you _listen_ to me?!" The man yelled. "I didn't bring you back! I didn't do anything! I _couldn't_ do anything, damn it!" He shouted in Ed's face. The man then sighed miserably and sank to the floor, leaning against the wall for support. His energy and anger seemed to evaporate, replaced by exhaustion and sadness. "I just sat and watched you die... I couldn't do anything..." He murmured, dropping his head into his hands.

Edward stared down at his commanding officer with wide eyes, shocked at the man's behavior. Why was the colonel getting so emotional over _him_? Unless what he said before Ed lost consciousness was true...

Finally Ed spoke, "Okay..." He whispered. "okay... I believe you..." He stepped over to the colonel's side and slid down the wall to sit next to the man, scooting as close to him as he dared. "But if you didn't transmute me... Then how did this happen? People don't just come back to life, colonel."

Roy sighed and combed a hand through his hair. "I don't know... Your guess is as good as mine. I thought I was dreaming when I saw you, remember? I have no idea what's going on." He said.

Edward looked down at his lap. "I don't know either..." He sighed.

Edward just sat next to his superior, shifting uncomfortably. He scowled and lifted his arms up to inspect. "I must look like a walking horror story." He mumbled, peeling a sticky, blood-caked sleeve from his flesh arm in disgust.

Roy snorted. "You have no idea."

Ed gave him an annoyed look. "What's that supposed to mean?" He grumbled.

Roy frowned and stared into Ed's eyes. Yep. Still red. "It's just that your eyes are probably the more important change in your appearance, not your bloody clothing." He stated.

Edward scowled. "You aren't making any sense. What's wrong with my eyes?" He snorted, annoyed.

Roy mentally slapped himself. Of course Ed didn't know about his change in eye color. "Sorry. What I'm trying to say is that your eyes changed color somehow. They changed from yellow to red. They've been like this ever since you woke up." He explained gently, worried that Edward might freak out about this new bit of information.

Edward stared at his superior for a few moments, trying to understand what he had just told him. "What? My eyes? Why would my eyes change color? That's ridiculous." He snorted, shaking his head.

Roy scowled. "I'm serious, Fullmetal! Why would I lie? This situation is too dire for that. Your irises have changed from gold to red! Knowing why might help us understand what's going on!" Roy snarled.

The boy blinked, shocked at his superior's outburst. "You're serious? But... That doesn't make any sense. If they changed from gold to red then it must mean they're bruised or something. But then I should have limited vision, but I can see perfectly fine!" He reasoned.

Roy sighed and shook his head. "I don't know why, Fullmetal. I'm just as clueless as you."

Edward quickly got to his feet. "I have to see them myself. Maybe I can find out what happened." He stood, leaving Roy to stare after him as he walked over to Riza's desk. After digging through a drawer, he pulled out a small mirror. He lifted it up, peering into it. Immediately, the boy began to tremble.

"C...Colonel..." Ed whispered, voice trembling. He turned his head to look at his superior officer. Mustang was shocked to see such horror in the boy's eyes.

"What's wrong?" Roy asked warily. What could have frightened the boy so much?

Ed brought the mirror to Roy and gave it to the colonel with a trembling hand. "L-Look at m-my reflection..." He stammered.

Roy angled the mirror so that he could see Ed... Or... He _should_ see Ed, but he couldn't. There was nothing there! it was as if he was invisible.

Roy immediately dropped the mirror and stared at Ed in horror. Edward wrapped his arms around himself and shivered. "This feels so wrong..." He whispered. "I feel inhuman... like some sort of monster." Edward wrapped his arms tighter around himself and trembled as if he were feeling an icy chill that Roy could not. "W-Why is it so cold?!" He gasped, shutting his eyes tight and shaking his head. He was so confused.

Roy hesitantly reached up, pulling Edward back to the floor, and slowly drew him into another hug, unsure of how Ed would react to such a gesture. The boy sighed with relief as the colonel's warmth spread to his cold body and he leaned into the touch.

"Feel better?" Roy murmured.

Ed nodded, but he suddenly gasped in pain and cupped his hands over his mouth.

"What?! What's wrong?!" Roy asked frantically.

Ed groaned and curled up. "M' teeth 'urt." He whimpered. He suddenly convulsed and let out a shriek.

Roy gasped and wrapped his arms tighter around the boy to both comfort and restrain him. "Shhhh... I'm here, you'll be fine." He murmured.

Edward stopped crying out and breathed heavily with a few whimpers here and there.

"You okay?" Roy asked once the boy's pain died down.

Ed shakily removed his hands from his mouth. He looked up at Roy and smiled weakly. "Y-Yeah... I'm oka-"

With a gasp of shock and horror, Roy suddenly let go of Edward and scrambled back fearfully.

Edward looked confused and a little hurt. "What's the matter?! I thought you were helping me!" He said.

Roy shook his head to clear it and scooted back over to Edward. He studied the boy before he suddenly poked Ed's mouth. The young alchemist gasped and swatted Roy's hand away.

"They still hurt! Stop it!" He growled.

Roy's eyes narrowed. "Open your mouth."

"What? N-"

"Just do it!" Roy shouted.

Ed blinked in surprise but did as instructed. Roy stared at the boy's teeth with an expression of horror. He looked away and waved his hand. Ed closed his mouth and crossed his arms.

"What was that about?!" He growled.

Roy looked at him with scared black eyes. "Y...Your upper canine teeth..." He stammered.

Ed raised an eyebrow. "What about them?"

"They're _fangs_!" He blurted.

Edward stared at his superior with wide eyes. "WHAT?!" He shrieked. He immediately grabbed the mirror Roy had dropped and looked into it. He quickly realized his mistake and instead started poking at his teeth with his fingers.

"Be careful! They're probably sha-"

"Ouch!" Ed hissed and pulled his hand away from his teeth. He looked at his finger as a tiny drop of blood formed. He felt like he should wipe it away like any other wound... But then he felt a much stronger need... He stared at the droplet with animalistic hunger and drool started leaking from his mouth.

Roy's eyes grew wider and wider with absolute horror. Edward was staring at his own blood like a starving animal.

The droplet of blood slipped down Edward's finger, Ed's bright red eyes followed it immediately.

Roy couldn't take it, this was starting to scare him. He reached over and smacked the boy on the head, hard. Edward yelped and slapped his hand over the spot he hit. He glared at Roy, who flinched at the sight of those hungry, burning red eyes.

Edward noticed his horror and frowned. "What's wrong?" He asked warily.

Roy closed his eyes. "You started staring at your blood like a starving animal would at a piece of meat... I... I don't know if you're human anymore..." He murmured grimly.

Edward's eyes widened and he looked at Roy, who was shying away from the him. Ed's eyes suddenly became saddened. Tears pricked at the corners of his vision.

"What's wrong?" Roy asked.

Ed took a shaky breath. "I...I'm not human... If I'm not human... Then what am I?" He asked quietly.

Roy bowed his head to think. "You can't be a homunculus... Or a chimera..." He mused. His eyes suddenly widened, becoming horrified. It all suddenly made sense. The mirror, Ed's body temperature, his eye color, his strange behavior, his _fangs_. Roy took a shuddering breath and dropped his head into his hands.

Ed started getting worried. "What is it?"

Roy looked at the boy with sorrowful eyes. "I remember reading books about vampires when I was young... And you are the spitting image of one... Do you think...?" His words trailed off.

Ed stared at him, blinking slowly. "No... No! Vampires _do not_ exist!" Ed snarled.

Roy glared at Edward. "You thought homunculi didn't exist! And look at them! Besides, you have fangs, an obsession with blood, your skin is cold, and you have no god damn _reflection_! You obviously exist!" He shouted.

Edward stared at Mustang with horrified eyes. They suddenly filled with tears and began cascading down his cheeks. Ed's small body was racked with sobs.

"I-It can't be... I-I c-can't be..." Ed whimpered.

Roy blinked in shock, realizing that he'd been yelling at the boy and throwing everything that was going wrong in his face when he had no reason to. And now Edward was crying because of him.

He reached over and tried pulling Edward closer to comfort him, but the boy pushed him away. "D-Don't touch m-me! I'm a m-monster!" He shouted.

"I don't care." Roy persisted. He pulled Ed close and wrapped his arms around the boy once again. "I don't care if you're really a vampire. I will help you get through this, I promise." He murmured, rubbing the child's back soothingly.

Edward sniffed and fought the urge to move closer to the heat Roy's body provided. He wasn't supposed to be this weak. Not in front of his superior. "Why?" Ed asked quietly, "Why do you want to help me?"

Roy sighed, his warm breath stirring Edward's hair. "I want to help you because I care about you. I meant what I said to you, just because I know you're alive now makes no difference." The man pulled away from Edward and looked down at the young alchemist. "I will help you figure this out. I'm here for you." He murmured, smiling gently.

Edward shakily returned his smile and nodded. "Thanks, Mustang..." He said quietly.

Roy's smile widened. This had to be the first time Edward had ever thanked him. "You're welcome." He replied, giving the boy a playful squeeze. "Come on, we'd better go. If it's okay with you, I'd rather you stay with me since Alphonse is in Risembool. My house is plenty big enough and I don't want you to be alone in your dorm." He said, receiving a reluctant nod from Edward.

Roy smiled and detached himself from their embrace and stood up. He ruffled Edward's hair affectionately and offered a hand to the boy. Ed took it and allowed Roy to help him stand with some difficulty. He wobbled on his feet and nearly fell over when Mustang let go of his hand. Luckily, the man caught him before he could face-plant the wood floor.

"Are you okay Ed?" Roy asked worriedly.

Ed nodded and shakily stood again, leaning on Roy for support. "Y-Yeah... I'm just exhausted. Bleeding to death really takes it out of you." He joked weakly.

Roy cracked a small smile. "Yeah. I'm pretty tired too. Maybe we should stay here tonight..." He glanced around and spotted his couch through the door to the inner office. He carefully led Edward across the room and into the smaller office. He helped the boy onto the couch and left to retrieve a blanket from the supply closet for Ed. By the time he returned, Edward was fast asleep, curled up on his side and shivering. Mustang gently wrapped the blanket around his subordinate and sat on the couch next to the boy.

Roy watched Edward sleep with only the moonlight shining through the windows to see by as he reflected on what had just transpired.

Edward was a vampire. It made sense, if you looked past the whole mythical creature thing. Edward _had_ been bleeding from what looked like two cuts on his neck, which, now that he thought about it, _did_ look like bite marks. Even Edward's appearance was almost exactly the same as the vampires described in fairy tales and myths.

This whole situation seemed impossible, yet here Roy was, watching a living, breathing vampire sleep.

It was sad, really. It just had to be Edward who ended up like this. The child who already endured hell now had to deal with this. But now he had Roy to help him, to support him and keep him safe. Mustang smiled to himself at that thought; Edward was actually letting him help for once. And he promised to do whatever he could to get Ed through this.

Roy Mustang planned to keep that promise no matter what.


	3. Chapter 3: The Sunrise

Chapter 3: The Sunrise

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><p>Roy awoke to a sharp prodding in his side and the bright sun peaking over the horizon, shining through the large windows in his office. He immediately felt something poking him again as soon as he opened his eyes and yawned. He looked down and saw a scared, still red-eyed, Edward curled against his side, seemingly trying to make himself as small as possible.<p>

Roy raised an eyebrow. "What are you doing?" He asked.

Ed looked up at him. He looked scared, Roy realized. "What's wrong?" He asked worriedly.

"Don't. Move." Ed growled.

Roy's brow furrowed. "What's going on?"

Ed looked towards the large window in the office that was currently letting sunlight into the room. "The sun... It hurts and burns like fire" He hissed.

Roy blinked in surprise before he gasped and removed his jacket and quickly wrapped it around the boy. "Oh gate, Ed! Why didn't you wake me up sooner?! You could have been hurt!" He shouted as he went to close the blinds. Soon the room was shielded from the sun and Edward unwrapped himself from Mustang's coat, hopped off the couch, stretched his arms, and gave a huge yawn.

Roy stared at the two long, razor-sharp incisors in Ed's mouth and suppressed a shudder at the sight of them. The boy noticed Mustang's staring and quickly snapped his jaw shut, ashamed.

Ed looked down at the floor. "Oh... Yeah... I still have these things." He sighed.

Roy shook his head. "It's fine, Fullmetal. As long as you don't cut yourself again."

"I'll try not t- AGH!" Ed suddenly stumbled and fell to his knees with a pained cry, doubled over and clutching at his stomach.

Roy gasped and ran over to him. "Fullmetal! Are you okay?!" He asked worriedly.

Edward groaned and cracked open an eye. "Y-Yeah... It's just my stomach... I feel like I haven't eaten in days..." He growled.

Roy cursed under his breath. "I don't know if vampires can eat anything that a human does..." He mumbled.

Ed shot Roy a fiery glare and bared his teeth. "Don't call me a Vampire! I'm still human! I won't act like an animal and I definitely won't eat like one!" He snarled angrily.

Roy stepped back, shocked by Ed's rage. He shook it off and shrugged.

"Alright... We'll try regular foods, probably start with meat. Maybe you can have th-"

The office door suddenly slammed open, revealing a distressed Riza Hawkeye. She spotted her commanding officer and ran over to him. "Colonel! There's blood in the outer office! What happened? Are you-" she blinked in shock and at the sight of blood all over the floor in Mustang's office and their clothes.

Ed quickly ducked his head and didn't look her in the eye. Roy glanced down at his uniform and remembered that he was covered with blood, as was Edward.

Riza immediately began to check them for injuries. "What happened?!" She asked frantically. "And why is it so dark in here?" She looked around before going to open the blinds.

"NO! RIZA, STOP!" Roy shouted desperately.

Too late. Light flooded the room like a huge flash bomb, blinding Roy momentarily.

"AAAAGH!" Edward screamed in agony. The sickening smell of burning flesh assaulted Mustang, reminding him of Ishbal and he had to force down the bile rising in his throat.

"Fullmetal!" Roy shouted, running over to where the blonde was hunched over on the floor in pain.

Riza gasped and quickly closed the blinds again. "What happened?!" She ran over to them.

Ed raised his hand to stop her. "No! Stay back, Hawkeye." He gasped, panting heavily before struggling into a sitting position. Mustang helped Edward stand up and led him to the couch.

"Are you alright?" Roy asked worriedly.

Ed panted and nodded his head. "I'm fine... Luckily I don't stay hurt for very long..." He said.

Roy sighed with relief.

The sound of a gun being loaded snapped their attention to Hawkeye. She had her trusty pistol in her hand and her finger on the safety switch, threatening to flick it to off.

"Will SOMEBODY tell me what the hell is going on?!" She demanded.

Edward gulped and shielded his eyes. "Uhhh..." He looked at Roy and motioned to Riza.

Roy choked and reluctantly stepped forward. "Um... You see... It happened last night right after you left..." He began. Roy went on to explain what happened the night before. He told her about how he found Ed with a heavily bleeding wound and explained how the boy had already lost too much blood and bled to death. Before Riza could object to that, Roy continued to tell her that after two hours of being dead, Edward awoke. He told Riza about the changes in Edward's appearance, but of course he didn't tell her how much it had terrified him... Finally, he told his lieutenant about them falling asleep on the couch and their discovery of the affect of sunlight. "Then you came in and here we are! Ed's a Vampire!" He finished with a shrug.

Riza stared at her superior as if he were insane. Roy frowned and sighed.

"I'm serious Hawkeye..." He growled.

She scowled and spun around. "Fine, lie to me! I just wanted to know if you were alright!" She snarled angrily. She started walking to the door when Edward suddenly bolted from the couch and appeared in front of her, blocking the doorway. He had his eyes closed and his hand stretched out in front of him to stop her from continuing.

Riza huffed and pulled out her pistol. "You're both crazy. Don't make me use this." She sighed and began loading the bullets.

Edward opened his blood-red eyes and gave a toothy grin. When Riza glanced up next, she dropped the gun in shock. The weapon and it's bullets clattered to the floor but she didn't pay attention to them. She simply stared at the young blonde standing in front of her.

Ed smirked. "We weren't kidding." He hissed.

Riza stepped back, terror imbedded in her brown eyes. Ed watched her slowly back away with his piercing red gaze.

Roy put a hand on her shoulder when she nearly backed into him. She gasped in shock and spun around. She stared at Mustang with wide eyes, breathing heavily. Roy put both hands on her shoulders to steady her.

"It's alright, lieutenant. He doesn't bite." Mustang said with a smirk.

"Agh..." Ed groaned and walked up to the two of them. "No. Just... No. I'm going through too much for you to be cracking jokes, bastard!" He snarled, baring his fangs angrily.

Riza stepped away from Edward, her eyes held fear and distrust. Ed's shoulders slumped and he slowly shifted his gaze to the floor.

"Sorry..." He mumbled. "Didn't mean to scare you..."

Riza relaxed a tiny bit but she still kept her narrowed eyes directed at the blonde vampire. Riza heard Roy move beside her and lean close to her ear.

"Hawkeye." Roy whispered. "Now that you believe he's a vampire, you have to realize that everything else I told you is true. Edward DIED, Lieutenant. Imagine how that must have felt. then he had to be forced back to life as a monster trapped in a never ending cycle of pain. And now one of his closest friends is SCARED of him. You're treating him like a monster. I highly advise that you stop." Roy hissed quietly.

Riza blinked and grimaced as she felt guilt pool in her chest. She looked closer at Edward and realized that she could see the agony in his eyes as plain as day, though the boy was fighting hard to conceal it.

How much pain was he in right now?

Hawkeye quietly walked over to the young alchemist and hugged him. Ed gasped in surprise as he was pulled against her. Riza grimaced, the boy's skin felt like ice...

"I'm sorry, Edward... I shouldn't have treated you that way..." Hawkeye said sadly. "Are you cold?" She asked.

Edward hesitated, but soon gave in. "Yeah... I am... It's so cold... I can't stand it..." He whispered.

Riza hugged the boy tighter, rubbing his back comfortingly. She felt Edward relax.

Suddenly Edward let out a strangled cry and pulled away from her. Hawkeye gasped and stepped back in shock. Roy, however, quickly ran up to the boy and crouched down.

"Ed what is it?" He asked worriedly.

Edward clenched his teeth and managed to stand up, albeit shakily. "I'm... I'm fine..." He panted. But he stumbled again with a gasp of pain and fell back to the floor. "Wait... N-No I'm not! Gah... Dammit..." He grimaced and wrapped one arm around his stomach while he used the other to support himself.

"What's happening!?" Riza asked worriedly. She crouched down next to the gasping teen.

Roy leaned close to Edward and studied him. The boy was sweating and his face was screwed up in agony as he breathed heavily. He whimpered and tightened his grip on his stomach.

Another piercing bolt of pain tore through Edward's body, forcing an agonized shriek from the boy.

"DAMMIT!" Ed screamed, startling Roy and Riza. He slammed his metal fist against the floor and clenched his teeth. He cracked open a blood-red eye and looked at Roy. "Agh... This is much worse than before!" He grunted.

Riza glared at Roy. "Can you please tell me what's hurting him?!" She snarled.

Edward whimpered and collapsed on the floor, seeming to have ran out of strength. He looked at Riza with pained eyes and grimaced. "Wh...When I first woke up like this after I died... I felt like I hadn't eaten in days... As time went on, that hunger grew until it felt like my insides were on fire... And now it's much worse... If I don't eat something, I'm sure I'll die..." Ed closed his eyes. "But I can't... I c-can't! I won't drink the blood of anyone, I won't let myself! There has to be another way! Or-" The boy let out a choked gasp. "O-Or else I'm going die from this..." Ed groaned and curled in on himself.

Riza stared at the boy with horrified amber eyes. She didn't know that Ed was already feeling the thirst for blood... But why does it hurt this much?! She's gotta do something!

Roy beat her to it. He reached his arms over and slid them under Edward's body. He lifted the young alchemist and carried him to the couch. He gently set him down on the soft leather and looked up at the clock.

"Dammit!" Roy hissed. "The others will be arriving soon. We can't let them see Edward! Come on, Lieutenant, we're going to my house. I'm taking the day off."

Roy walked back over to the couch and found that Ed had fallen unconscious. He sighed with relief. At least the boy wasn't in pain anymore.

"Wait sir!" Riza said before Roy could grab Edward and leave. The colonel looked at her questioningly. "Your uniform. It's covered with blood. Change into something clean first."

Roy nodded and opened a closet located at the back of the office. He took out a spare uniform and glanced sheepishly at Riza. She laughed and turned her back to him while he changed.

Once the colonel was ready, they quickly cleaned up the bloody mess that was still there from last night with some alchemy before they left. They placed a note on Havoc's desk that told them to tell anybody who asks about the colonel that he wasn't feeling well so he took the day off.

With that, Roy draped Edward in his unnoticeably blood-stained cloak and carried him through HQ, receiving a few odd looks from soldiers who had arrived at work extra early. They were brushed off with the excuse: 'Fullmetal isn't feeling well.'

Riza and Roy soon made it outside and piled into Mustang's car. Riza took the back seat with Edward so she could make sure he was okay. Roy drove, staying just within the speed limit, until they arrived at the colonel's two-story home.

Roy parked in the driveway and got out of the car. He opened the back doors and lifted Edward from the backseat. He kicked the door closed and approached his house. Riza opened the big wooden door and let him in.

"Ah, good to be home after all that chaos." He sighed. He glanced down at Edward's sleeping form and felt a pang of sorrow. Hasn't the boy been through enough? Obviously not... Well, Truth is a bastard.

Mustang crossed his large living room, asking Riza to light the fireplace as he passed her. He climbed the stairs and opened one of the many spare bedrooms he had in his rather large home. Mustang gently lowered Edward's body to the mattress and started piling blankets on him in an attempt to keep him warm, though it was the middle of spring.

Roy took a pencil and paper from a dresser in the corner and wrote Edward a note explaining where they had taken him before he went to leave the room. he glanced back at the sleeping form one last time before he shut the door.

Riza was in the kitchen pre-heating the oven and cleaning a little. She couldn't stand cooking in a messy environment. She glanced up as Roy entered the kitchen and pulled a chair out from under the dining room table and dropped into it. He held his head in his hands as he reflected on everything that had happened...

"Are you okay, sir?" Riza asked softly, pulling up a chair and sat across from her superior.

Roy glanced up and heaved a deep sigh. "No! How could I be okay? I watched him DIE, Hawkeye! He literally died in my arms and I couldn't do a thing about it... I wonder if there was something I could have done to change this outcome..."

Mustang took a shaky breath and looked up at his lieutenant with grief-stricken black eyes. "I'm worried, Lieutenant. He's in so much pain... I can see it better than anyone else. Ed always keeps his pain locked away, and he's good at it. But now you can see it in his eyes... He's still trying to keep it contained, but it's obviously too much for him... What if it's a hundred times worse than he lets on?" Roy asked worriedly. He then grimaced. "We've got to feed him before this kills him... But what if we can't find a replacement for blood? What if the pain drives him insane? What then? I don't know what to do..." Roy whimpered, letting his head fall back onto his palms.

Riza smiled sadly and reached for one of Mustang's hands. She squeezed it comfortingly. "We'll figure it out, don't worry. Central library has plenty of books about vampires. Maybe those can shed some light on the situation." She said softly.

Roy sighed and nodded his head. "Yeah... Good idea... But until we do that... We've gotta feed Fullmetal. He insists that he tries normal human food before anything else. Got any ideas?" He asked.

Riza thought for a moment before she grinned. "How about I make us some steaks? I can make Edward's more rare than the rest, but it's worth a shot! Besides, I know a really great spicy meat marinade recipe!" She announced happily.

Roy frowned. "Does it have garlic in it?" He asked seriously.

Riza blinked in surprise. "Yeah... It does, actually..."

Roy quickly shook his head. "No garlic. Vampire, remember?" He said seriously.

Riza blinked. "Oh... Right... Sorry, I don't know much about vampires." She chuckled. "I'll just do a regular lemon powder marinade."

Roy smiled and nodded. "Well, we'd better get to it. Hope it works."

Roy entered the kitchen thirty minutes later carrying a couple grocery bags. He took three steaks and handed them to Riza, who had just finished the marinade.

She thanked Roy and placed the strips of meat into the liquid to soak.

"Alright. The steaks will take about thirty to sixty minutes till they are ready to be cooked." Riza said.

Roy smiled and motioned to the stairs that lead to Ed's guest room. "I'm gonna go wake him up and make sure he's okay."

Riza nodded and went back to her cooking.

Mustang jogged up the stairs and approached Ed's room. He knocked gently. "Fullmetal? You awake? Dinner's almost ready." He called softly, testing the doorknob and found that it was as he left it, unlocked, but he didn't enter. There was a shuffling sound and soft footsteps on the other side.

"Huh? Who is it?" Edward's sleepy voice called from the room.

Roy tapped the door with his knuckles. "It's just me, Fullmetal. I took you to my house after you passed out. Riza and I are making you something to eat to see if you can have regular food." The man said.

"Oh... Okay. Thanks, I guess." Ed mumbled tiredly.

Mustang smiled a bit. "Alrighty then. Come on out whenever you want, I'm not rushing you. The steaks still have a while before we can cook them so you can come downstairs and hang around the living room with me if you want." He said.

As soon as Mustang turned to leave, the door opened. Edward smiled sleepily up at the colonel and they left together. As they walked down the stairs, Edward stopped and sniffed the air.

Ed looked at roy suspiciously. "You're not using Garlic in the food, are you?" He questioned.

Roy laughed and ruffled Ed's hair. "Of course I wouldn't risk using garlic, you idiot. Hawkeye might not know much about this kind of stuff, but when I was younger I used to love reading about myths and legends. One of my favorites to read about were Vampires. I was a special case when I was young..." Roy chuckled.

Ed smiled to himself. 'Maybe I should read more about vampires.' He suddenly halted, his eyes widening.

Roy looked back at him in confusion before shrugging and sitting down on one of the couches in the living room.

Ed gasped and ran up to the colonel and sat beside him. "Colonel! I-If I'm really a vampire... Doesn't that mean most myths and legends about them are true?! Y-You've GOTTA take me to the central library! I need to read more about them! Maybe I can find a cure!" He blurted excitedly.

Roy grinned. "Of course! You didn't think I never thought of reading more about Vampires, did you?"

Ed smiled sheepishly.

Roy sighed. "Oh ye of so little faith. You've gotta give me more credit! I'm pretty smart! I know you're a freaking child genius, but I know my stuff." Roy huffed.

Ed smirked. "We both have our specialties and weaknesses!"

Roy smiled, "yeah..." He trailed off and became serious. "You know, Fullmetal... I've been meaning to ask you..." He began. "Do you remember what happened before you stumbled, half-dead, into my office? If we knew who or what attacked you, there is a good possibility that they're a vampire as well. Can you recall anything about the person who attacked you?" Roy asked.

Ed nodded his head. "I didn't see his face, but he did have a cobra tattoo on his wrist. That's all I saw." He said.

Roy nodded slowly. "That's something at least." He looked down at Edward and frowned. "Could you tell me what happened when you were attacked? It may help." He asked seriously.

Edward grimaced and he took a shuddering breath. "Yeah... I guess I could..." He closed his eyes tightly and shuddered as he relived the memory.

Roy put a hand on the boy's shoulder. "It's okay. I'm here. You can tell me, it's important that you do." He said softly.

Edward let out a shaky breath and lifted his head a little higher before he began, "I was walking past HQ last night to get to my dorms after giving a friend of mine a basic alchemy lesson. While I was walking back, this creepy asshole suddenly grabs my arm and pulls me into the space between the dorm buildings. He pushed me against a wall and pinned my arms behind me." Edward grimaced and continued. "Before I knew it, there was a horrible burning sensation right here-" Ed pointed at the two one-inch jagged scars on his neck. "It felt like my body was on fire, as if I was being burned from the inside out. Luckily for me I happened to have a slip of paper with a simple transmutation circle on it in my pocket from the alchemy lesson I had taught. I managed to make him let me go, but as soon as I turned around, he grabbed onto my neck and tried to strangle me, but I bit his hand and he let go. Then I used my alchemy and sent him retreating to the rooftops. I couldn't think strait after that, my vision started fading in and out. I could feel the blood draining from the wound... So I looked toward HQ and noticed a small light in your office window. I somehow managed to get inside but by then I was exhausted. I had to drag myself through the halls until I found your office... And... And I think you know the rest..." Ed whispered. His body was trembling uncontrollably and his red eyes were glazed with fear.

Roy reached an arm over and put his hand on the top of Edward's head and absently stroked his hair, trying to comfort him. "It's okay. You did great. That was much more than I expected you to remember..." Mustang sighed and gave Ed's shoulder a little squeeze before he left to check on the steaks.

Edward slowly regained his composure and shook the fear away. Ed perked up when Roy called his name.

"Ed! Dinner's ready!"

Ed hopped off the couch and walked toward the kitchen. 'I hope this works...'


End file.
